Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
This is a guest post from our friend, Travis Meinolf, public textile artist and teacher. Travis’s current project can be seen at the Museum of Craft and Folk Art, in San Francisco, CA, from now until January 24th, 2010. If you’re in the area, we hope you’ll stop by, add your own piece to the weavings and interact with textiles in a new way.
Open Source Embroidery is a group art show; the running theme of the works in the show, curated by Dr. Ele Carpenter, is how current open source programming and high-tech philosophies intersect with contemporary and historical craft production practices. My installation in the show, a continuation of my Social Fabric/Weaving Place projects, is a space with small, simple-to-use looms I have designed, materials generously provided by Lion Brand Yarn, and chalkboards, for people to write notes about what it is they would like to be producing in the space.
Previously I have asked for people to spend their time producing material to be made into blankets for people on the streets and in shelters, but this time, I thought I would let it be completely open to suggestion from the participants. Only time will tell what the outcome will be, but the process will be one of absolute agency of the producers. Anyone who participates is invited to direct their action and suggest direction for the group, based on the simple strips of cloth that they can make. I will update as the project progresses. Hopefully the system I have put in place allows for freedom but is a space for structured, productive play, resulting in a true “dialectical material”.
Thanks go out to Lion Brand, who made me feel like a kid on Christmas opening boxes of skeins and skeins of beautiful yarns to provide a truly sensual and mesmerizing weaving experience for museum-goers, again…
Travis J. Meinolf
action weaver
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Posted in Crafting, Yarniverse | 2 Comments »
Our friend, artist and weaver, Travis Meinolf is back with another Action Weaver video. Click here to watch it. (Recognize the yarn he’s using?)
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Posted in Community, Yarniverse | 3 Comments »
This is a guest post by Travis Meinolf, a public textile artist and teacher in San Francisco. He has presented his work at numerous art shows and workshops, as well as taught and published pieces on weaving and fiber arts. His newest project, the Weaving Place, allows visitors to learn weaving and produce loom woven pieces.
The Weaving Place is an installation I was invited to bring to the Vancouver Art Gallery in Canada by my friend, artist Kai Althoff. It is a room with six stations for a sculptural weaving device that I have been working with, which is made from a piece of laser-cut plexiglass. Kai made some instructional drawings, which are enlarged and mounted around the room so that people can learn to weave using the looms, spend some time enjoying that process, and either take home what they’ve made or leave it to be stitched into patchwork wool blankets to be distributed later to people who might need them. Basically, I want to provide this experience of production for its own sake, understood as leisure but also realizing something that will actually function to keep somebody warm.
Sherry Stewart and Kathleen Lemieux at the Vancouver Art Gallery have been really helpful in involving their volunteer and public programs departments. They have recently informed me that participation is so great that they are running out of the yarns that I collected, including a generous donation from Lion Brand! This is just another example of how people coming together can make connections, both physical and social, that enhance our lives.
The show runs until February 15th, and for more information you can visit Vancouver Art Gallery’s website at vanartgallery.bc.ca. To see some pictures of the space see flickr.com/weavingplace, and for more examples of my work go to actionweaver.com. (I will be installing more little looms for 4-10 year-olds at the Children’s Discovery Museum in San Jose on January 17th!)
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Posted in Yarniverse | 3 Comments »
YarnCraft is our 30-minute downloadable radio-show on all things yarn-related. To find out more about the show or to listen to episodes, visit the YarnCraft blog.
In episode 19, Working with Looms and More, we discussed loom-knitting and spool-knitting, and the benefits of these crafts. They’re great for people with joint pain, for whom knitting and crocheting might be too painful. They’re great for beginners who may find knitting and crocheting tough to get started on. They’re especially great for children, as an introduction to all the possibilities of yarn. Here are 5 kid-friendly patterns for various looms and spool-knitters:
For more on knitting without needles and more, listen to the podcast [MP3].
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Posted in YarnCraft Podcast | 2 Comments »
